e
sees you coming for him with that Australian crawl-stroke of yours!"

For which I did my best to break in his floating ribs. Heaven only knows
how late we talked that night. And Dinky-Dunk had a bundle of surprises
for me. The first was a bronze reading-lamp. The second was a soft
little rug for the bedroom--only an Axminster, but very acceptable. The
third was a pair of Juliets, lined with fur, and oceans too big for me.
And Dinky-Dunk says by Tuesday we'll have two milk-cows, part-Jersey, at
the ranch, and inside of a week a crate of hens will be ours. Thereupon
I couldn't help leading Duncan to the inventory I had made of what we
had, and the list, on the opposite side, of what we had to have. The
second thing under the heading of "Needs" was "lamp," the fifth was
"bedroom rug," the thirteenth was "hens," and the next was "cow." I
think he was rather amazed at the length of that list of "needs," but he
says I shall have everything in reason. And when he kind of settled
down, and noticed the changes in the living-room and then went in and
inspected the bedroom he grew very solemn, of a sudden. It worried me.

"Lady Bird," he said, taking me in his arms, "this is a pretty hard life
I've trapped you into. It will _have_ to be hard for a year or two, but
we'll win out, in the end, and I guess it'll be worth the fight!"

Dinky-Dunk is such a dear. I told him of course we'd win out, but I
wouldn't be much use to him at first. I'd have to get broken in and made
bridle-wise.

"But, oh, Dinky-Dunk, whatever happens, you must always love me!"--and I
imagine I swam for him with my Australian crawl-stroke again. All I
remember is that we went to sleep in each other's arms. And as I started
to say and forgot to finish, I'd been missing my Dinky-Dunk more than I
imagined, those last few days. After that night it was no longer just a
shack. It was "Home." Home--it's such a beautiful word! It must mean so
much to every woman. And I fell asleep telling myself it was the
loveliest word in the English language.

In the morning I slipped out of bed before Dinky-Dunk was awake, for
breakfast was to be our first home meal, and I wanted it to be a
respectable one. _Der Mensch ist was er isst_--so I must feed my lord
and master on the best in the land. Accordingly I put an extra
tablespoonful of cream in the scrambled eggs, and two whole eggs in the
coffee, to make dead sure it was crystal-clear. Then, feeling like Van
Roon when Berl